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NFL Free Pick: Denver vs. Cincinnati Betting Lines & Preview

Broncos vs. Bengals Free Pick

NFL Week 15 Regular Season action sees the Denver Broncos taking on the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday, December 22 at Paul Brown Stadium. Cappers Picks provides free *NFL* handicapping tips all season long.

Division leaders meet in Cincinnati on Monday Night Football this week when the Denver Broncos pay visit to the Bengals.

NFL Week 16 Betting Lines

Denver (11-3) at Cincinnati (9-4-1)
When: 8:30 PM ET, Monday, December 22, 2014
Where: Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio
Broadcast: ESPN
Broncos NFL Betting Odds: -3½ +100
Bengals NFL Betting Odds: +3½ -120
NFL Over/Under Betting Odds: 47.5
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The Bengals are currently in a dog fight with Baltimore and Pittsburgh for the AFC North crown while the Broncos have home field advantage in the playoffs within their sights.

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A lot is on the line Monday in what is shaping up to be an intriguing AFC clash.

Broncos

The Denver Broncos have become less of a powerhouse offense the last six or so weeks but they have transformed into one of the more well-balanced offenses in the game. It is not up to Peyton Manning to get it done each and every week – the running game has come out of nowhere and has allowed Peyton to stay upright and has kept defenses honest.

Manning himself has been just OK – he threw just 20 times last week in a 22-10 win, completing 14 for 233 yards and just one TD. He hasn’t had a blowup game in a while but could be due against a Bengals team that hasn’t been great against the pass all season long.

Demaryius Thomas caught 11 passes for 123 yards and TD last week, Emmanuel Sanders still exists as a serious threat and Julius Thomas is as healthy as he’s been in six or so weeks. Translation – the Broncos passing game is still scary on paper – easily capable of ripping any defense apart.

If Manning can’t get it done, CJ Anderson will be there to do his part. He ran the ball a staggering 29 times in Week 15 for 85 yards. He has been the offensive star for Denver the last month and absolutely has to be accounted for by any opposing defense.

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The Denver defense has been very good all season long – a weakness last year isn’t so much this year. Denver has the all around game to be a nightmare for any team- if one aspect falters another is often there to pick them up.

Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals relished the chance to be the first team that Johnny Manzeil played in his first start. The demolished the rookie en route to a 30-0 win – one week after a 42-21 loss to division foe Pittsburgh.

In the game against the Steelers, it was obvious that the Bengals were going to struggle keeping up with top tier offenses and the Broncos are a top tier offense.

The Bengals recorded three sacks last week, they picked off Johnny Football twice and they allowed just 103 yards of total offense last week – the same cannot be expected against the Broncos! Denver’s Offensive Line is superb, Peyton Manning is a consummate pro and the weapons in Denver’s offense far exceeds that of Cleveland’s!

Offensively the key for Cincinnati will be getting the running game going against Denver’s 10th ranked run defense. Jeremy Hill has been terrific and is coming off a 148 yards, 2 TD performance against the Browns – Giovanni Bernard looked good as a change of pace in that game as the Bengals attempted a staggering 45 rushing attempts.

If things are going well for Cincinnati, more of the same can be expected – running the ball, wearing down the clock and keeping Peyton Manning off the field will be paramount.

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The X-factor in this game is the erratic Andy Dalton who threw for just 117 yards last week. He is a tad difficult to trust although he has some serious weapons at his disposal.

That said expect AJ Green to me matched up against Aqib Talib – advantage Broncos!

NFL Week 16 Betting Trends

• DEN are 9-2 ATS in their last 11 games in December.
• Over is 17-4-1 in DEN last 22 games on fieldturf.
• DEN are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 road games.
• CIN are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games in December.
• CIN are 12-4-1 ATS in their last 17 home games.
• Under is 10-4 in CIN last 14 games in Week 16.

The Cincinnati offense will likely be forced out of its comfort zone in this game – Peyton and the boys will score forcing Cincinnati to play catch-up. We all saw how they fared against the Steelers in that capacity!

4* NFL Week 16 Betting Prediction

The Bengals have not been able to raise the level of their game to compete with top level competition in some time – my guess is that pattern holds true in Week 16.

Denver Broncos -3 1/2

Denver is too good while Cincinnati is too… average.

Check out our Updated NFL Week 16 Odds.

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By DaveB

Dave B has been a Fantasy Football writer for us for 10 years. A couch potato wannabe, Dave’s insights have been read by 10’s of people for years. He hope’s for world peace + global relaxation. Enjoy and remember only smoke things that are completely natural.